Vikings RB Adrian Peterson played two days after his son died Oct. 11. / Bruce Kluckhohn, USA TODAY Sports

by John Hult, USA TODAY Sports

by John Hult, USA TODAY Sports

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - A Lincoln County grand jury has indicted Joey Patterson on second-degree murder and manslaughter charges in the beating death of an NFL star's young son.

Joey Patterson, 27, is accused of beating 2-year-old Tyrese Robert Ruffin on Oct. 9 in the south Sioux Falls apartment he shared with the boy's mother.

Ruffin was the son of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, who'd only recently learned about him. The NFL MVP said last week that he'd met the boy for the first time while he was on life support, but had planned to meet Ruffin later this year.

Patterson, who was living with the boy and his mother, was indicted late Friday afternoon on charges of second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter, aggravated battery of an infant and child abuse.

Second-degree murder carries a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole. The manslaughter charge is punishable by up to life in prison.

The grand jury heard testimony from two detectives and two doctors before signing off on the charges.

Wollman said the final autopsy results are not complete for Ruffin, but that there was enough evidence to proceed with new charges.

"We had preliminary reports to work with," Wollman said.

Ruffin spent two days in intensive care before his death. Patterson had called 911 on Oct. 9 to report a choking, but doctors soon concluded that Ruffin's injuries were not accidental.

Patterson was charged with aggravated assault and aggravated assault on an infant before the child's death, and a judge ordered him held on a $750,000 cash bond.